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guspartenza · 5 months

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THE SUPERWOMAN FROM KRYPTON, FANART+FANFIC INTRODUCTION

art by https://www.deviantart.com/gabrielrb91

What would you think about an alternate universe with a female-Clark as Superwoman in the golden age?

Is the only main change in the classic canon together with her love interest, is not Earth-11, let's say is Eart-19...meet Clara Kent/Superwoman!

It's 1948, in Metropolis!

Up in the sky! Look! It's a bird? It's a plane? No! It's Superwoman!

Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound, this amazing stranger from the planet Krypton, The Woman of Steel: Superwoman!

Empowered with X-ray vision, possessing remarkable physical strength, Superwoman fights a never-ending battle for love, truth, and justice, disguised as a mild-mannered newspaper reporter, Clara Kent!

In a world plagued by the Cold War and mistrust, can Superwoman bring peace to the world while fighting for love, truth, justice, and the American way? Can she finally find a happy life with Louis Lane, the love of her life? Can she defeat Lex Luthor and the terrible ancient evil he is about to awaken?

You can download full free illustrated fanfic in pdf here! SUPERWOMAN FROM KRYPTON-FREE ILLUSTRATED FANFIC by lordmallory on DeviantArt or here https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XPh48B9_giTgDpnBXjRP-4Z4ksUU-WzR/view?usp=drive_link

Art by https://www.deviantart.com/letoart

KALA-EL/CLARA JOSEPHINE KENT/SUPERWOMAN

BORN: Krypton, a moon in a distant galaxy. Formally 28/02/1918, SMALLVILLE, KANSAS

PROFESSION: ASSISTANT REPORTER

YEAR: 1948

PLACE: METROPOLIS (METROPOLIS COUNTY, NEW YORK)

art by https://www.deviantart.com/wagemagegames

-Farmgirl, born Kansas 1918. No sisters nor brothers.

-Nicest girl in the office but very unfunny.

-Disappears without reason very often.

-Lives alone in a little flat and has a golden retriever dog called Krypto.

-Daddy issues. Her father didn't let her pursue a career as ballet dancer or swimmer (he didn't want her to take advantage of her powers) and died when she was 18.

-Former nurse during the war in the Pacific Ocean and in the Philippines.

-Loves children and dogs

-Tomboyish trails. Not quite elegant.

-Music-Hall fan, Katherine Hepburn and James Stewart fan

-Favorite books: Scarlet Pimpernel adventures, Jane Austen, Upton Sinclair and Virginia Wolf, somewhat eclectic.

-Amateur writer of children's stories, with characters such as DeeDog and the Komfy Dragon.

-She greatly admires her boss, Perry Weiss. A 1940s very liberal Republican style journalist, chief editor of the Daily Planet. She despises her deputy boss Cat Grant.

-Ambiguous relationship with her other boss Louis Lane. Clara has a good friendship with Louis and hides that she is very much in love with him. At the same time, she competes a lot with Mr. Lane and is annoyed by his political ideas and his paternalism.

-Strange friendship with young millionaire Bruce Wayne, something that is very surprising for the people in the Daily Planet newsroom.

-Always good scoops but never appears in the front line and too stubborn and independent to grow fast in the newspaper.

-Progressive quaker like her fathers.

-Civil rights supporter.

-Dislikes General McArthur, dislikes even more Lex Luthor

-Loves Eleanor Roosevelt but also Governor Dewey.

-Hates guns

-Supports unions, splits ticket between Metropolis Liberal Party and the two main parties. Politicians must be kind.

art by https://www.tumblr.com/bobbinalong

SUPERHEROINE LIFE

-Superpowers: Flight, Super-Strength, Super-Speed, X-Ray Vision, Heat Vision, Enhanced Vision, Super-Hearing, Super-Breath, Freeze-Breath, High Invulnerability, Super-Stamina

-Can fly to a Mach 100 speed.

-Acts as Superwoman since October 1945.

-Defeated Zod invasion in July1946.

-Initial bad relationship with Batman but now close friends and allies. Together with Flash they conform the Justice League.

-Didn't act as Superwoman during the World War II because she was afraid of her powers. After the discovery of the Holocaust and the atomic bombs she decided to step in and showed herself to the world on autumn 1945.

-Worst enemy: Lex Luthor, heir of Nikola Tesla, rocket engineer & CEO of TELCORP (Tesla-Luthor Co.)

-Deeply in love with Louis Lane, who strongly rejects the superheroine.

-She hides her supersuit and cape under her normal clothes. The material is extraordinarily thin, flexible and resistant, and very easy to wear under normal clothing. Whenever someone needs Superwoman, she just needs to find an inconspicuous place, rip her shirt, unfold her cape and fly away at full speed.

-Widely admired.

art by https://www.deviantart.com/bluerollerball

art by Gabriel Larragan (Ko-Fi)

FAMILY & ORIGINS

The El family & Krypton

Krypton was a decadent civilization located on a moon near a large gaseous planet in the Orion belt, next to a green sun. In the past they had visited Earth and other planets expanding civilization, but their penchant for slavery, war, resource extraction and violence caused many of these projects to fail. Even in 10,500 BC the Kryptonians almost caused the terraforming of the Earth, melting the poles and destroying Atlantis and other civilizations, causing among other things the end of the Ice Age. Nearly 99% of humanity perished during that Kryptonian attack.

Over the centuries the Kryptonians lost the fuel necessary to travel across space and ended up confined to their planet, dedicated to warfare, genetic engineering-creating clones whose organs they needed to extend their lives-to pleasure and to exploiting the subsoil of their planet. The Kryptonians also established a dictatorship with a caste system based on genetic engineering and prohibited natural reproduction.

Jor-El and Lara were a couple of scientists critical of the system and supporters of the abolition of the caste system. They also fought against genetic engineering, violent repression, and the permanent destruction of the ecosystem. After a series of terrible earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and gas outbursts, it became clear that Krypton's core was collapsing, due to the energetic drilling and magnetic energy used in Krypton's industry. The Planet was doomed but the ruling caste ignored it. Jor-El and Lara had a daughter, Kala-El in a natural way against all the rules of Krypton. Lara managed to manufacture a small ship capable of making a space jump to save her daughter from the end of Krypton. General Zod stole her design and managed to build a larger fleet of ships but Jor-El managed to sabotage them and send the fleet to the Phantom Zone, a black hole near Krypton.

Lara decided to send Kala to Earth, confident that the culture of this planet was much more hopeful and kinder, and less prone to the mistakes of Krypton than other distant inhabited planets closer to them. Jor-El preferred to send her to New Genesis, another distant inhabited planet, because there Kala would receive less radiation and develop less extraordinary abilities that would allow her to live a normal life, but eventually Lara convinced him. During her journey to Earth and her growing period under a yellow sun, Kala would develop wonderful powers and could live a long life in the service of mankind, rehabilitating Krypton's legacy.

Within hours of Kala's birth, she was placed in the small ship, accompanied by the robot guide Kelex, whose memory was imprinted with the consciousness of Jor-El and Lara, as well as nearly all of Krypton's cultural heritage. They included several Kryptonian artifacts inside, such as a nearly indestructible ceremonial female ancestral caped suit with the crest of the House of El on its chest.

The ship was launched just hours before Krypton's demise and travelled through space for thirty years...

art by https://www.tumblr.com/bobbinalong

Joe&Martha Kent, Kansas life

Joe and Martha Kent were a Quaker farming couple whose farm was struck by the pod carrying Kala-El the 28th of February of 1918. Although owners of substantial property they were a very humble, cooperative, austere, devout, and civil rights-minded people. Martha Kent was a descendant of Kansas abolitionist guerrilla fighter John Brown. They both raised Clara very lovingly and unwilling to ask too many questions about the baby's origin. Clara was a very sickly child as her body did not adapt to the Earth. She was an affectionate and obedient girl and devoured books. The Kent family were avowed supporters of the New Deal and Joe Kent was a member of the local farmers union.

With puberty Clara developed very fast, and her superpowers began to appear. She soon began to excel in swimming and ballet, while still questioning her origins, but Joe forbade her to pursue a professional career to prevent her from taking advantage of her powers, and moreover he forbade her to use her superpowers to help others, fearful of humanity's reaction and wary of savior messiahs in the era of interwar dictators.

Clara rebelled against her father but eventually gave in, fearful of her own abilities and understanding her parents' position. During these years, Clara didn't fit in very well, but she had two best friends, Pete Ross, with whom she was secretly in love, and Lana Lang. Pete didn't know about her superpowers, but Lana did. In 1936 Joe Kent died of a heart attack, devastating her daughter. Clara was unable to go to college after her father's death and worked as a teacher and nurse's aide in Smallville. Her engagement to Pete Ross, her teenage sweetheart failed in 1939 when she revealed her powers to Pete and he panicked, although he later promised to keep the secret. In those times of sadness, Kelex, the Kryptonian robot, was activated, explaining to Clara her true origins, which filled her with confusion.

Between 1939 and 1941 Clara lived in Canada and Alaska searching for the Fortress of Solitude, a strange place Kelex was pointing, but with the outbreak of World War II she decided to enlist as a nurse in the Pacific, refusing to use her powers except to help the wounded, fearing to cause more harm than good. In late 1944, the hospital ship on which he was traveling, the USS Shuster, was torpedoed by the Japanese. Clara jumped into the water and managed to keep the ship afloat with her super strength until she managed to beach it. No one understood how miraculously the ship had stayed afloat and even levitated. The incident was kept secret. Clara got a permit to return home and she revisited Alaska where she found the Fortress of Solitude with the help of Kelex. There she was able to better understand her origins and began to train her superpowers.

After learning about the Holocaust first and the atomic bombs later, Clara decided to become Superwoman and help others with her superpowers dressed in the ceremonial Kryptonian costume of her ancestors. Her mother Martha supported her decision. She relocated to Metropolis, where in September 1945 she was hired as an assistant reporter by Major Louis Lane, who had just returned from Europe.

art by LuisF47 - Hobbyist, Digital Artist | DeviantArt

On October 1, 1945, Superwoman unveiled herself to the world and caused a huge sensation. The world was changed forever. Superwoman introduced herself to the newly formed United Nations, explaining her origins and her desire to help others and to stay out of political conflicts except to protect civilians.

Clara Kent began her double life as a journalist and as Superwoman. In July 1946, she defeated the invasion of General Zod and the survivors of Krypton. She also had to face other enemies such as the Intergang - an alliance of all organized crime in Metropolis and Gotham, Atomic Skull - an ex-Nazi agent with terrifying technology, Lex Luthor who began to develop his hatred and paranoia towards the superheroine, and his creations such as Metallo.

art by https://www.deviantart.com/xtophe

DAILY PLANET CHARACTERS

Perry Weiss, a major shareholder and editor in chief of the Daily Planet. Born in Odessa in 1886. Jewish immigrant from humble origins who became a skilled journalist and founded the Daily Planet as a tool of the liberal wing of the Metropolis Republican Party to unseat the city bosses of the time. Still a staunch liberal, he supported Roosevelt in 1932 and 1936, is an ally of Mayor LaGuardia. He won the Pulitzer Prize in the 1920s for defending the innocence of Sacco and Vanzetti. Friend and ally of Louis Lane's father. He is very demanding with his employees but is very fond of Clara. He admires and defends Superwoman despite Louis Lane's distrust. Best friend of Cat Grant.

Cat Grant, Co-chair of Perry Weiss, Pulitzer winner, closeted lesbian, and Ayn Rand Fan. Born 1901, she comes from a fine family of Metropolis Knickerbockers. She is like Louis the least liberal element of the newspaper. To protect herself she married a very old friend of her father who helped her lead a double life. For twenty years she lived with a painter named Margaret Ivy. Considered the best writer of the Daily Planet, in addition to being a journalist she has published two novels. Very elegant and popular in intellectual circles. She is tremendously authoritarian. She mistreats Clara a lot because she does not respect her authority and because of her different political ideas, but as Clara grows as a journalist and Cat Grant suspects that she is Superwoman, she will protect her and push her forward without Clara knowing it. Best friend of Perry Weiss

Jimmy Olsen and Lucy Weiss, best friends of Clara.

Jimmy is a junior urban photographer. He comes from a town in Massachusetts. He is 7 years younger than Clara. He is a party animal, friendly, generous, and somewhat naive. Yet he is a skilled photographer who has been able to capture the worst of the night and day of Metropolis. Miraculously he always gets the best pictures of Superwoman (Clara helps him a little). Very democratic and complains about working for a newspaper that is too conservative for his taste. Adores Clara whom he treats as his big sister. It doesn't even cross his mind that she is Superwoman. Jimmy thinks that Louis is a snob and a bigot.

Lucy is a senior political photographer and the only woman on photo reporting on the Daily Planet who works outside the fashion department. She is the eldest daughter of Perry Weiss. She is an intrepid photojournalist who gets overseas passes and has been to several military conflicts. A loyal friend of Clara, and a very serious and professional woman. She is suspicious of Clara's double identity but would never say anything. She is the same age as Clara and a lover of jazz and the more alternative circuits of Metropolis.

art by https://www.deviantart.com/milkydraws8/gallery

art by https://www.artstation.com/pabloalcalde

LOUIS LANE, SUPERWOMAN'S WEAKNESS?

NAME: LOUIS LANE

BORN: 08/02/1912, METROPOLIS (NEW YORK)

PROFESSION: SENIOR REPORTER

YEAR: 1948

PLACE: METROPOLIS (NYC)

art by https://www.deviantart.com/rickcelis/gallery

-Rich family, born in 1912, first of 6 brothers.

-Caustic, cynical, ironic but somewhat kind.

-Commanding.

-Lives in Park Avenue with his 6-year-old daughter and his rich unfaithful wife, fashion reporter Pat Lane (neé Kelly). Very unhappy marriage.

-Major rank during the war in the US army. He also worked with the OSS.

-Elegant, sportsman, plays violin.

-Teaches music lessons in an orphan house in secret.

-Not that snobbish nor Wasp, new rich family traits.

-Arkham University alumni.

-Classic music and literature lover.

-Heavy drinker.

-Does not enjoy journalism, thinking of quitting to politics or teaching literature.

-Jewish father (Lane surname is a change from Lantzman), Irish catholic mother, raised catholic and religious, but not extremely orthodox.

-His father is a self-made tycoon who started as democrat in the Tammany Hall and then switched to republican. Close ally of Mayor LaGuardia.

-Fought in the European theater during World War II.

-Conservative republican opposed to his father liberal republican views, loves McArthur, who he thinks should be the next President.

-In the past he had a good opinion of Lex Luthor. He saw him as an innovator and freedom fighter, but his opinion changed when Luthor kidnapped him to set a trap for Superwoman.

-Perry Weiss favorite reporter.

-Won the Pulitzer Prize in 1941, for his articles about the first defeat of the Intergang.

-First person to interview Superwoman.

-Very nice and paternalistic to Clara. Louis pushes Clara's career forward despite Cat Grant's opposition. He is also secretly in love with Clara. Although he rejects Superwoman and suspects she is the same person as Clara, he deludes himself and rejects these suspicions.

-Tired of New Deal Politics, anticommunist.

-"a brilliant and kind man" for most of the Daily Planet staff, a "terrible asshole" for many others like Jimmy Olsen.

-Strongly rejects Superwoman and other heroes.

-Sometimes Clara really hates him.

-Famous line "Neither reds nor capes".

-He lives a bizarre love triangle with Clara Kent and Superwoman. Although he publicly rejects the superheroine, he also desires her and he and Superwoman have had moments of passion, which Louis feels guilty about because he is married and because of his religion. On the other hand, he is in love with Clara Kent as much as he rejects the figure of Superwoman. He deludes himself about the identity of both. A bit James Stewart in Vertigo, which destabilizes and infuriates Clara.

art by https://www.deviantart.com/guinnessyde

art by https://akiko02.carrd.co/

CURRENT AND PAST ENEMIES

Lex Luthor

Rocket engineer, CEO of TELCORP and Heir of Nikola Tesla. A Brilliant scientist who defines himself as a "radical humanist"...but in the early 30s supported closely fascism to stop "imperialism" and "usury" but later changed his mind and move closer to the USSR to fight "predatory western capitalism". Publicly, he is a tycoon and scientist loyal to the United States and works closely with the government. The world's greatest philanthropist. Loving father and husband. Hates Superwoman to death and believes she spells the end of humanity. Paranoid and ruthless but convinced that he does everything for the greater good.

art by https://www.deviantart.com/gus-art

General Zod & Faora

Political dissidents like the El on Krypton on the other hand believed that Krypton's only salvation lay in emigrating and invading, terraforming, and exterminating other planets. They almost succeeded in a coup d'état but after their failure they and their henchmen tried to flee by space jumping their ships, Jor-El managed to sabotage the launch and send them to the Phantom Zone. Over the years they managed to escape and arrived on Earth in 1946, shortly after Clara showed herself to the world as Superwoman. They tried to exterminate all humanity, but Superwoman and the armies of Earth managed to defeat them. Their invasion caused 5,000 human casualties but could have caused complete extermination. The experience was traumatic for Clara because she had to send Zod and Faora back to the Phantom Zone where they would surely die. Zod, Faora and their henchmen had not yet developed the full powers of a yellow sun like Earth's and so several of them were killed by human bombs and missiles. Their remains were stored by Russians and Americans. Superwoman managed to expel all Kryptonian technology and weaponry into space so that humans would not use it for warfare.

Doomsday

A truly near-indestructible abomination.

Perhaps from Krypton's past? Perhaps created by mistake by human scientists?

art by https://www.deviantart.com/fernando-damasio & https://www.deviantart.com/kristherion

The Toyman

Winslow Schott, former entrepreneur, and inventor of the 1920s toy business who was ruined in the Great Depression by banks and various betrayals. After a crime spree he was imprisoned in 1933 but escaped from prison recently completely crazed and ready to take revenge on the whole city using his inventions.

Brainiac "The Eternal Traveller"

An android resulting from the abhorrent merger of a famous astronaut and artificial intelligence, which was used by the first civilization of Krypton to collect information from other worlds. It is more than 100,000 years old. With the passage of time, he revealed against the Kryptonians, became evil and phobic to any form of life that he considered imperfect or inferior. It caused the destruction of many cultures. He wanders through space visiting planets and analyzing life forms. He probably has no enthusiasm for humans, much less for a descendant of the House of El.

art by https://www.instagram.com/estefaniaart_/

art by https://www.deviantart.com/midnightowl07

art by https://www.deviantart.com/artsandar

art by https://akiko02.carrd.co/

art by https://www.deviantart.com/son-neko

art by https://www.deviantart.com/dommnics

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bluest-planet · 8 months

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What the hell, miscellaneous KH HCs!

Destiny Islands: I like to think that the islands are actually a lot more numerous and bigger than what we see. With a unique culture based on various tropical/island cultures. Big Four being; Japan (specifically Okinawa tho) the Philippines, Hawaii, and the costal regions of Mexico and El Salvador/central america (bc you know me, I gotta inject some latine energy anywhere I can. But also as an excuse to have Sora drink Agua de Jamaica), with bigger islands and a buncha smaller ones :)!

On that note, I'm pretty sure I saw some fishing spears in Sora's room? It would be cute if he was learning to fish on his own or already knew before kh1. Also bc Ive got family members who fish right out of the river with rolled up pants and a net, so again, it would be neat if he fishes outside of the standard pole. (Also let's me think he could totally pick up a spear if pushed lol)

On that. Sora def likes seafood... C'mon... It's about the ahi katsus, the camarones a la diabla, refresca Ensalada, plantains, sugar cane juice, coconut crab and soba noodles, and purple yams...

I also like to hc that Keyblades help translate languages between most worlds, I say most bc... Sitch is there? And some others I'm probably not aware of. Anyways Riku, Sora, and Kairi speaking in their own language that's Japanese mixed with some other of the island languages on their own pls. The heart hotel can totally either also know it, pieces of it, or learn it very quickly. My bet is that Ventus and Xion get it instantly while Vanitas and Roxas take a hot minute with it.

Think it would be cute if they also had some more traditional dress or clothing motifs in their childhood photos. Obvi they think they're too cool for it now.

Unrelated; Sora is bulkier than Riku, since he's got that lithe ballet vibe going on, but Ventus is probably more like Riku in the sense that he's also a lithe build, Roxas and Xion are bulky too, with Vanitas packing the most muscle lol.

I bet Vanitas can also use his Keyblade backwards but doesn't, due to the connection Sora and Roxas/Xion should be able to as well, but none of them except maybe Sora willingly choose to fight that way occasionally.

TIME FOR XION HCS! look. Ik she's supposed to look like Kairi but f that noise she's so genderqueer. So that means I think she should be able to reclaim her weird ability to look differently to every person. Instead of letting others project of her, she should be able to choose how others perceive her. Both in a conscious and unconscious level she shape shifts in subtle ways. Like looking more like any of the heart hotel she's near or taking on new features, mixing and matching, rarely straight up copying. I feel like, she'll always have a weirdness where she doesn't know where she starts and Sora or Roxas begin, but finds peace in it eventually having a guide to her while still maintaining her identity as the one and only Xion. Matching faces/features at time as a form of connection and trust, comfortable knowing she's still her but able to show affection in that way. Like it doesn't matter what she looks like, she's still Xion.

Sora is a cat person. No I do not accept criticism at this time.

Sea salt ice cream always makes me think of the ramune popsicles that I had once. Same color. The sugar content makes them melt fast and are very soft, so I imagine it's the same flavour but slightly salty. Must be good.

Do you think some of destiny Islands have pink or black sand? Must be neat.

The air must be amazing, other than some stinging salty air, but all the plants n flowers... So going to big cities must be weird for Sora as the air isn't as clean. The Heart Hotel probably have moments where they imagine whiffs of sea breezes and vaguely miss it despite never being immersed in it.

Sora has earrings/piercings bc I said so. Anyways he got has a pearl set or opals and other water and volcanic gemstones/glasses.

Omg. There's totally a volcano on destiny Islands.

You can't tell me Terra, Aqua, and Ventus aren't siblings. I love them very much. They're always hanging off of each other esp after kh3... And they do that thing were they go brother each other in their rooms or follow each other everywhere in the castle if they're not doing anything. Or just vibe near each other while doing their own thing.

Aqua and Ven like to do origami together and make paper cranes and stars to fill jars and make wishes since they're into little myths and stories like that. Terra will be in the back wood carving or smth. Family time.

Terra gives good hugs, but Aqua has the sweetest kisses. Ven has both :) he is gentle and very soft. And also likes touch.

The Wayfinder Trio does that thing where if any of them are on the couch and one of them gets up they beg them to bring them water or snacks to which all of them will just do it but with different reactions. Terra will do it but tease that the others are super lazy, Aqua will just do it no question but count a debt in her mind, and Ven will low-key whine but the older two will say that since hes the youngest he has to its only fair as his super busy big siblings that always do if for him to guilt trip him.

Oh back on languages, if Ven is from the distant past, where they have odd names or later use latin for places like Scala ad Caelum (?) Then let's say he speaks Latin but doesn't really use or realize it due to memory loss, but I imagine he finds a book in the castle one day, and everyone is pikachu faced bc 'hey Ven how are u reading smth in a dead language?'

Basically. I just want everyone to have a bit more culture in em lol.

Uh. Maybe I have more, but I'm sleepy so good bye 👍

#kh #kingdom hearts #kh sora #kh riku #kh kairi #kh roxas #kh xion #kh vanitas #destiny islands #destiny trio #wayfinder trio #heart hotel #blue's hcs #sorry to all my mutals for the kh posting im just having a good time

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balanchine-ballet-master · 3 months

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The Story of the Original "Tea" Dancer

There was a delightful story in the Times on February 4th about George Lee, on whom Balanchine created the Tea variation in The Nutcracker. Here it is.

From Ballet to Blackjack, a Dance Pioneer’s Amazing Odyssey

George Lee was the original Tea in “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker.” A documentary filmmaker found him and a lost part of ballet history in Las Vegas.

By Siobhan Burke Feb. 4, 2024

Among the blaring lights and all-hours amusements of downtown Las Vegas, in a sea of slot machines at the Four Queens Hotel and Casino, George Lee sits quietly at a blackjack table, dealing cards eight hours a day, five days a week, a job he’s been doing for more than 40 years.

Lee, 88, was likely in his usual spot when the filmmaker Jennifer Lin was sifting through old photos at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in 2022, wondering what had become of a dancer with a notable place in ballet history. Pictured in a publicity shot for the original production of “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker,” in the role known as Tea, was a young Asian dancer identified as George Li.

For Lin, a veteran newspaper reporter turned documentarian, the picture raised intriguing questions. In 1954, when the photo was taken, it was rare to see dancers of color on the stage of New York City Ballet, the company Balanchine co-founded. Who was this young man, this breaker of racial barriers, this pioneer? Was he still alive? And if so, what was he up to? “I became absolutely obsessed with trying to find out what happened to George Li,” Lin said in a video interview.

In just over a year, that obsession has blossomed into a short film, “Ten Times Better,” that chronicles the unexpected story of Lee’s life: from his childhood in 1940s Shanghai, where his performing career began; to a refugee camp in the Philippines, where he fled with his mother, a Polish ballet dancer, in 1949; to New York City and the School of American Ballet, where Balanchine cast him in “The Nutcracker” to “Flower Drum Song” on Broadway, his first of many musical theater gigs; and ultimately, to Las Vegas, where he left dance for blackjack dealing in 1980. (He changed the spelling of his last name in 1959, when he became a United States citizen.)

The film will have its premiere on Feb. 10 as part of the Dance on Camera Festival at Film at Lincoln Center. Lee, who last visited New York in 1993, will be in town for the occasion, an opportunity for long-overdue recognition.

“So many years I haven’t done ballet,” Lee said over coffee at the Four Queens on a recent Sunday, after his shift. “And then suddenly Jennifer comes and tries to bring everything up. To me, it was like a shock.”

George Lee today. He has been a blackjack dealer in Las Vegas for more than 40 years. Photo: Saeed Rahbaran for The New York Times

But Lin’s interest has been welcome. “Jennifer is so perfect, she knows exactly everything,” he said. “She knows my background more than I do.”

Lin was not the only one who had been searching for Lee. In 2017, while organizing an exhibition on “The Nutcracker,” Arlene Yu, who worked for the New York Public Library at the time and is now Lincoln Center’s head archivist, was puzzled by the relatively few traces of him in the library’s vast dance collection.

“I think I’d tracked him down to 1961, but after that, it was really hard to find anything,” she said. “Whereas if you look at some of his peers in ‘The Nutcracker’ in 1954, they went on to careers where there was a lot more documentation.”

Lin’s fascination with Lee emerged through her work on another film, about Phil Chan and Georgina Pazcoguin, the founders of Final Bow for Yellowface, an initiative focused on ending offensive depictions of Asians in ballet. The role of Tea, a divertissement historically rife with such stereotypes—in Balanchine’s canonical version of “The Nutcracker” and others—has been a flashpoint in those efforts. Chan, too, had been struck by the 1954 images of “The Nutcracker,” which he came across during a library fellowship in 2020.

“I’m like, wait, there’s actually a Chinese guy,” he said — as opposed to a non-Chinese dancer with the saffron makeup or heavily painted eyes or even the artificial buck teeth worn in some old productions. “Who is this guy? And why do I not know about him?”

The "Tea" variation in The Nutcracker at City Ballet in 2015. The dancers are Ralph Ippolito, Claire Von Enck, and Baily Jones. Photo: Andrea Mohin for The New York Times

Lee, in his heyday, was a dancer to know. At just 12, he was already winning public praise. In a preview of a recital of the King-Yanover School in Shanghai, the North China Daily News called him an “extremely promising young Chinese boy, whose technique is of a very high standard.” A reviewer wrote that he “already may be said to be the best Chinese interpreter of Western ballet.” (Lee saved these newspaper clippings and shared them with Lin when they eventually met.)

Born in Hong Kong in 1935, Lee moved to Shanghai with his mother in 1941, when Shanghai was under Japanese occupation. During World War II, his father, a Chinese acrobat, was in Kunming in western China; he died in an accident on his way to visit Lee in 1945.

Lee’s mother, Stanislawa Lee, who had danced with the Warsaw Opera, was his first ballet teacher; as a child, he would follow along with her daily barre exercises. Shanghai had a significant Russian population, and with that a robust ballet scene. To earn money, Stanislawa arranged for her son to perform in nightclubs—“like a polka dance, or Russian dance, or sailor dance,” Lee said. The clubs would pay them in rice.

Little George Li in his Shanghai days. Photo: George Lee private collection via the NY Times

Fearing the Chinese Communist Party’s takeover in 1949, the two evacuated to the Philippines. An expected four months as refugees turned into two years. In 1951, an American friend of Lee’s father sponsored them to come to New York, where he introduced Lee to the School of American Ballet, City Ballet’s affiliated school.

As Lee narrates these twists and turns in the film, one memory anchors his recollections. Before they immigrated, his mother issued a warning. “You are going to America, it’s all white people, and you better be 10 times better,” he recalls her saying. “Remember that: 10 times better!”

The footage of Lee in his 20s suggests he took that advice to heart. In television appearances — with the company of the ballet star André Eglevsky, and in a number from “Flower Drum Song” on the Ed Sullivan Show — his power and precision dazzle.

“He was good; he was really good,” Chan said. “Clean fifth, high jump, polished turns, stick the landing—the training is all there. He’s already 10 times better than everybody else.”

In a 1979 interview heard in the film, the former City Ballet soloist Richard Thomas, who took over the role of Tea, raves about Lee’s peerless acrobatic jumps: “He was wonderful! Balanchine choreographed a variation for him that none of us have ever been able to equal.”

As Lee remembers it, Balanchine spent 15 minutes with him in the studio. “He said, ‘What can you do good? Show me what you can do good,’ so I show him something,” Lee said. “I did things like splits and double turns, down and up, turn again like a ball, and that’s it. He picked up some things and put them together.”

George Li as a student at the School of American Ballet. Photo: George Lee private collection via the NY Times

He recalled that during a “Nutcracker” dress rehearsal, the City Ballet makeup artist put him in full yellowface, and Balanchine insisted he take off the makeup. “He is Asian enough! Why do you make him more?” he remembers Balanchine saying. Lee was costumed in the Fu Manchu mustache, queue ponytail and rice paddy hat often associated with the role, now widely critiqued as racist caricatures. But he said he didn’t take offense. “Dancing is dancing,” he said.

Lee performed in “The Nutcracker” as a student; he was never invited to join City Ballet. But he clearly excelled in his classes and onstage. For that, he credits his strong foundation of Russian training in China — and his mother’s exacting standards. He can still see her standing in the studio doorway at the School of American Ballet, observing closely.

“She was watching the class and then would go home and tell me, ‘You did this wrong or that wrong, you got to do it this way,’” he said. “So I really worked hard, and I was good.” (His favorite teacher at the school was the demanding Anatole Oboukhoff: “He always wanted more, and that’s why I liked him very much.”)

To make a living Lee turned to musical theater, performing in shows like “Baker Street” on Broadway and the cabaret “Carol Channing with her 10 Stout-Hearted Men,” which opened in London. He pieced together jobs for more than 20 years, often unsure of what would come next.

Lee in flight in a production of “Flower Drum Song” in Las Vegas in the early 1960s. Photo: George Lee personal collection via the NY Times

He was dancing in a Vegas revue, “Alcazar de Paris,” now in his 40s, when a blackjack dealer friend suggested he go to dealer school. “I can’t dance all my life,” he remembers thinking. He decided to give dealing a try and soon landed a job at the Four Queens. Aside from four years at another casino, he has worked there ever since.

In December 2022, he got a voice mail message from Lin. With her reporting skills and some crucial assists from Yu, she had determined that he lived in Las Vegas. Of the five phone numbers she found for George Lees, four led nowhere; his was the last she tried.

When they finally connected, she put her other project on hold to focus on his story; she and her small creative team had a final cut by November. “George is 88, and I wanted him to be able to enjoy this moment, where people recognize him for his dancing,” she said.

As he prepares to return to New York, Lee said he felt gratified, most of all, for his mother.

“I’m proud for her that I didn’t let her down,” he said. “It makes me feel better to look up at her and say: ‘Look, mother, now you see what’s happening, what you did for me. You gave me all the good foundation, everything. Through you, I’m here now.’”

George Lee today. Photo: Saeed Rahbaran for The New York Times

#Balanchine #George Lee #George Li #Nutcracker ballet #Balanchine's Nutcracker #Asian stereotypes #Nutcracker Chinese Dance #New York City Ballet #NYCB #Ten Times Better #ballet film #Saeed Rahbaran #Andrea Mohin

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inlocusmads · 10 months

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Incorrect Thorne-Rose Quotes (Brooklyn 99 Edition)

I kind of want to do more of these! These are largely from Brooklyn 99. If you're interested to see more of these, do let me know!

Trystan: I wasn't hurt that badly. The doctor said my bleeding was internal. That's where the blood's supposed to be.

_____

Nora: Now I've got to meet a whole new group of people. I hate people. Life sucks. Nothing good ever happens.

_____

Trystan: Ask him about his bank account! (Thumps interrogation room glass) Ask about his bank account! Ask him about his -h- *breaks glass* account. You should ask him about his bank account.

Trystan: Boss! Nora broke the glass!

_____

Trystan: (about his family) Jokes on them, cause I'm having tons of fun with all this free time - catching up on reading, going for walks. It's great. The other day I walked all the way to Maryland. Gorgeous.

_____

Luke: Tommy, can we order some food?

Uncle Tommy: Cook's gone, I sent him home.

Trystan: (barging in) You have any more of these pretzels?

Uncle Tommy: Sure..?

Trystan: *literally chugs down the whole jar of pretzels like it's nothing*

Uncle Tommy: I'm going to go call the cook.

_____

Ruby: Writing things down is nerdy? What do you do?

Nora: Just forget stuff like a cool person.

_____

Trystan: Why are there so many rules? I mean, next thing you're going to say I can't be late.

Nora: Yeah. That's like the first thing I said.

Trystan: Aaah.

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Nora: Look I'll make this real simple so even these dumb-dumbs can understand. Man did crime.

_____

Trystan: Here are the ground rules. You can punch me, kick me, pull my hair. I am a-okay being stabbed. Biting and scratching are on the table. You can use fire.

Luke: Those are the ground rules? Is there anything off limits?

Trystan: Damn man you got something really sick you want to do, huh? All right. I like it. Don't tell me. Surprise me.

_____

Nora: Oh yeah I didn't tell you. I got kicked out of ballet school. For beating the crap out of ballerinas.

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Trystan: (over an interrogation) This is taking too long! I'm going to miss the farmer's market!

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Nora: (half asleep) I'll rip your head off. I'm gonna rip your damn head off, Holbeck.

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Trystan: I don't mess with computers, okay? Ever since I died of dysentery on the Drakkos Trail, I was like "No thank you, I am done with this."

_____

Trystan: LUKE!

Luke: Oh my God is that-

Trystan: RUBY!

Ruby: It does sound like-

Trystan: (runs up to them, is panting) It's me, Trystan Thorne.

Luke: Yeah we know, hey Trystan how have you been?

Trystan: Very bad. Someone is trying to kill me. All I know is I woke up in a pool of my own blood, next to a metal chair that had a dent in it the same shape as my own head.

Ruby: What were you doing before the attack?

Trystan: I was sitting in my metal chair, watching the season 2 premier of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

_____

Trystan: It's Sebastijan

Nora: Sebastijan. Yeah I said it.

Trystan: No. Sebastijan.

Nora: Sebastijan.

Trystan: Not even close. Sebastijan.

Nora: Sebastijan.

Trystan: Almost. Sebastijan.

___

Nora: (about Mafalda) She's so cool. She's been buried alive three times. I've only been buried alive once.

_____

Nora: I've only had Silver for a day and a half, but if anything happened to her I'll kill everyone in this room and then myself.

Luke: Very violent eulogy, I like it.

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Mafalda: Here are two pictures. One is your locker. The other is a garbage dump in the Philippines. Can you tell which is which?

Nora: That one's the dump?

Mafalda: They're BOTH your locker.

_____

Nora: (over the phone) Trystan--

Trystan: Hey, Detective! I'm so sorry we're not there yet, but a guy fell down the stairs and then the old lady shot our perpetrator and then we stopped a bank robbery-

Mags: -- And I lost my shoe.

Trystan: And Mags lost her shoe, but we're almost to the Agency!

____

Trystan: All right, Luke. We have to act soon. That cold medicine Nora chugged, it was the non-drowsy kind. She's all over the place.

Nora: HEY GUESS WHAT! I've got a new lead to ask my client about. There's a drug dealer on State Street. Why doesn't someone answer the phone? I'll get it, I'll get it! (Answers phone) Hello, there is no Wyvern here. You have the wrong number, goodbye.

Luke: I'm Wyvern!

Nora: That's a dumb name, but it's yours and you should be proud of it because you are the greatest person I've ever known. WHERE IS MY FILE?

______

#incorrect thorne rose #crimes of passion #nora x trystan

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jrbustamante · 2 months

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Deadline for Applications for National Performing Arts Companies is March 15

Please share to those who may be interested...

APPLICATIONS for the selection of National Performing Arts Companies in ballet and contemporary dance, theater, outstanding choral music, and indigenous performing ensembles will be accepted until Marc 15, 2024. The National Performing Arts Companies Act or NPAC was enacted into law through Republic Act No. 11392 on August 22, 2018. The law was established to provide a framework for the…

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#arts and culture #ballet #CCP #cultural center of the Philippines #culture #Filipino culture #Funding #Philippines #regional performing groups

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themakeupbrush · 2 years

Photo

Miss Supranational Philippines 2022 National Costume

In Philippine Tagalog, Haribon means King of the Birds. Within the archipelago nation, there lives a true Haribon – one of the largest, most powerful, and rarest birds in the world – the Philippine Eagle. The Philippine eagle is considered the largest of the extant eagles in the world in terms of length and wing surface area, it has been declared the national bird of the PHILIPPINES The national costume is made with movable wings controlled by her arms and a flip-bird head to complete the look. It is custom-made for ballet dancing which Alison showcased with grace and grandeur.

#miss supranational 2022 #miss supranational philippines 2022 #philippines #national costume contest #i like it but south africa's version of a bird on pointe from miss universe was better executed #imo

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etes-secrecy-post · 7 months

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Me 🇵🇭: Yum, yum! Lucky him for having at Denny's Restaurant for his late birthday. TBH, it's freaking expensive to eat here, including myself and my family. Only a decent wealth people can eat here, kind a like Max's restaurant (our Philippines' best chicken restaurant) [CLICK ME!].

Meanwhile...

Riya 🐰🏎️: Thanks for inviting us your wonderful ballet. 😊 I'm all welled balance on my 10th year anniversary. 🩰

Miya 🐰🐻🔋: Yo, Ri! You're not the only one who's celebrating anniversary, mine's too, ya know! 😁 How about we spin together to see who's the longest!

Riya 🐰🏎️: You mean, like a human Beyblade or a wild Tasmanian Devil's spin? That's over the nuts, Mi, but worth a try! 😅

Miya 🐰🐻🔋: Yeah-yuh! Let's n go, bey-bay! 😁 *Miya spuns like a wild Tasmanian Devil*

Riya 🐰🏎️: 😳 *Gasp* Whoa okay! *Riya runs*

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mayumiiyuu · 2 years

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i. talia

eddie munson x Filipina!oc

part ii || part iii

Talia Evangelista was the perfect girl, the golden child of her family, the Sweetheart of Hawkins High; living the sweet life as top of her class and excellent social life with her numerous friend groups. She was a star, burning brighter and brighter towards an even brighter future. But every star eventually burns out. What happens when she finally drops from the exhaustion, spiraling from all the pressure riding on her shoulders? And What more when you throw in the metalhead dungeon master of the Hellfire club into the mix?

face claim (artbreeder ily)

A/N: i’ve literally been so obsessed w eddie munson u have no idea,, so i made an oc for stranger things as one does when they fall for a fictional character,, also i’ll be posting more of these bc nothing inspires me more than dorks i could fall in love with !! also eddie might be a little ooc, still feeling out his character lol.

TW: none, though her family story is deeply rooted in her country’s history, the Philippines, mentioning the disappearances of reporters and journalists who criticized the government’s corruption during the Marcos Regime, specifically when Martial Law was declared.

Talia Evangelista was a lot of things.

She was top of her class, top of the school. And on top of that, she was a champion figure skater, having ballet classes to help with her choreography, an accomplished musician, and a black belt in taekwondo, she was nothing short of a go getter and overachiever.

Despite all her extracurricular activities, she was outgoing and bubbly, friendly to any and all who approached her, naturally attracted to her sunshine-y persona. She was in multiple friend groups due to her various extracurriculars, from those she discussed with as captain of the debate team, to fellow ice skaters and ballerinas, the band mates she had made comrades with, to some of the smiley, preppy cheerleaders, to even some of the regular party goers and throw-ers in the school. She helped them with their homework, even slipping some of the lazier students cheat sheets, she was seen as harmless, her kind aura naturally made people want to open up to her about their problems, and of course she was always there for them when they needed it! With all her compassion, wit, and friendliness, she was nicknamed ‘The Sweetheart of Hawkins High’.

She had a good reputation, yet another gold star for her ever growing collection of awards.

She was the perfect girl, with a perfect track record and a bright personality to match.

Of course she was perfect. That was what she had to be. What she could only be, in the eyes of her aunt, lest she be worth anything less. Otherwise, she would be tormented, both at home and at school.

In spite of her seeming perfection, Talia loathed herself. She hated how she could never fully, truly, be 100% herself. Sure, she was sweet and charming, but no one wanted a girl who kept talking about her problems, her aunt had snapped at her once; and it was too bad that Talia seemed to have many, keeping each and every shard of her broken heart inside of her.

Any of the people in her life had to be approved by her aunt, everything about herself had to be scanned and approved by her. What she wore, who she talked to, whatever she did, was always closely monitored by her aunt. She didn't have an identity, nothing real anyway. She was always what ever other people wanted her to be, her personality changing around others like a chameleon changing its colors to suit its environment. Introverted with the introverted, extroverted with the extroverted, go along to get along. Sometimes she wondered if she truly knew who she was. Besides this identity crisis, Talia had a crippling case of an inferiority complex, constantly being berated by her aunt whenever she didn't achieve what she wanted her to achieve. Her insecurities ran deep, carefully hidden behind all her medals and honorary certificates. She constantly felt the need to prove herself, to compete, just for her to feel some shred of self worth and temporary happiness.

If Talia had the power to do anything on this earth it would be to reunite with her father.

Joselito Evangelista was a reporter, already one of the most dangerous jobs in the Philippines, even more dangerous now upon the start of the Marcos Regime. Borderline obsessed with his work in order to reveal the truth to the eyes of the people, his fixation on his work only put him into more danger as he was heavily invested in exposing the corruption of their government. This ultimately led him to being "sent away" on a particular "job". But Talia's family knew better.

The sudden disappearances of numerous reporters, the closure of radio stations and newspapers that held any content of criticizing the present government ran rampant across the country. They knew Joselito would be one of them.

Talia, his youngest child and the only girl of the family, a true daddy's girl, was utterly devastated upon realizing what had happened.

And so they were entrusted to their father's younger sister, Auntie Isabela, who took them to the United States of America, not to live the American dream, but to escape the nightmare that was in the Philippines.

The family had done so in order to ensure the children's safety lest they be targeted or used for ransom. And, having no mother to care for them, Auntie Isabela had become their legal guardian and ward.

Auntie Isabela was nothing short of a warden.

A's had to be straight, medals had to be gold, ribbons had to be blue, there was never any room to be second place.

"Second place is first place for those who lose." Her aunt sneered at the thought of her niece getting anything silver or bronze as an award.

Not only that, but Talia needed to have a good social life, told to make connections along the way to ensure her future, her family's future. With Gael, her eldest brother being in the military, Joaquin, her second brother following in the footsteps of his father to become a journalist, Andres, the middle child, having gone to veterinary school instead of pursuing his Auntie's wishes for him to become a lawyer, and Danilo having to temporarily drop out of college, she was their only hope of a better life, as her Auntie Isabela always reminded her.

Talia was never allowed to settle. Why would you settle when you could always have more, be more? Her Aunt said condescendingly. Talia was an Evangelista for God's sake, an old rich family in back in the Philippines, she could only be the best to have the best.

Her family was complicated.

Her father was the black sheep of the family, having been basically disowned by his parents for following a career path far different to what they had set before him, that, piled unto the fact he was forced to become a single father while his wife left him, made things worse for his standing in the family and how they viewed him. Talia's branch of the family had always been branded as the "poor" ones, kawawa, as her relatives would say. They didn't have the luxury of growing up with her grandparent's money, they didn't stay in their ancestral home nor were they raised there, unlike her cousins. Their house was simple compared to the vast, elaborately decorated homes of her other aunts and uncles, sometimes they had struggled to pay the bills and groceries while her other relatives dined like kings and queens without a care in the world.

"Do you really want your family to stay poor? I did my brother a favor by taking you here and this is how you repay me? You go retake that test and give me an A unless you want to be living in squalor all your life. You're in the last year of your high school, the deal was that I would take care of you and your brothers until you turn 19. How long do you think you can stand being without my money? So stop crying! Do your work, study harder until you memorize the entire textbook. You're not having dinner unless you do that!"

But Talia never saw her family as poor. Sure, there were hard days, their house was small and there were times when the electricity took a few weeks to come back, but those days living there were the happiest days of her life. While they had been having troubles budgeting enough money in order for all of them to eat, Tala never had a day where she would go hungry. Her brothers and father ensured that she was well fed. "So you'll grow up big and strong!" Her father would cry with a wide smile and a crinkle in his eyes whenever he would give Talia the bigger half of whatever it was they were eating.

She may not have went to school with the newest designer bag nor had all the branded clothes snooty rich kids had, but she remembered how her father would always come home with pasalubong, homecoming gifts from his work trips to give to her and her siblings. She remembers the times when he'd come home from work, tired, but still with a smile on his face as he handed her the prettiest dress she had ever seen. Since then, she had worn it to mass almost every week, in shiny shoes her oldest brother polished himself, and the charm bracelet left by her mother.

She never had the best toys either, but who needed toys when you had a tin can and slippers? She would always come home excitedly after school as she would always call her brothers and neighborhood friends to play tumbang preso with her, throwing slippers at a can until it fell and they had to run from being tagged as the next it. She didn't need any Barbie doll or action figure when she had the spinning tops her brothers would trade their other toys for to the other kids, knowing it was her favorite to play with.

When her brothers were in high school, sometimes Gael would go to the school supply shop near their house in order to fetch her new crayons or colored pencils and paper for her to draw on. Instead of singing songs to pretty girls like the other high school guitar playing boys did, Joaquin took his time in order to teach Talia how to play after begging him to teach her. Occasionally, Andres would use part of his cigarette money to buy Talia her favorite candies from the store a few blocks down. Danilo, meanwhile, learned how to sew in order to help patch up or embellish Talia's clothes.

Looking back, Talia never felt any lack in her life when it came to material things. "Your wish is my command." Her father would say whenever she excitedly opened whatever pasalubong he had brought home that day.

She and her family were tight-knit, thick as thieves. Her brothers, being her older brothers, were always protective of her, always made sure she was doing okay even though they weren't too okay themselves, and Talia is forever grateful for that.

Imagine the heaviness in her heart when they were forced to go their separate ways, leaving her with the aunt they disdained.

Gael, in service moving from place to place depending on where he was stationed. Joaquin on the East coast, Andres in the west, and Danilo on a long trip to Mexico.

Where have the days gone?

What goes up, must come down. That was Talia's rule in life. No expectations no problem, so long as she was the epitome of perfection, nothing and no one could ever stand in her way.

Until she had caught herself spiraling.

It started out like it typically did, sudden migraines while studying, complete lack of motivation, and the questioning of her life and list of priorities.

She had convinced herself she was just putting on too much pressure on herself, letting her aunts harsh words get to her, and all she needed to do to relive her of her stress was to relax.

And she knew a quick and easy way to do so.

It was no secret that some of her brothers had smoked it, Andres had been a smoker since high school, and her other brother Danilo had his fair share of being laced at parties. But of course, picture perfect, precious little Talia would never touch those sort of thing!

She silences the doubts in her mind, things change. Maybe she wasn’t the picture perfect Talia she was made out to be.

Desperate for some sort of relief, Talia had managed to ask around for dealers in the area, and eventually a name made their way in hushed whispers out from their lips: Eddie Munson.

He had since been labeled by the popular kids as a "freak", bullied and made to be the butt of every joke by his peers for being different and non conforming. Talia couldn't help but envy him, or admire him in a way, with his carefree demeanor and somewhat unconventional ways of expression. He only hung out with people he truly liked, and liked him just as much. He didn’t hide under any false pretenses, he was wholly and truly himself.

While he had an eccentric reputation, Talia's little interactions with him were short and pleasant. Picking up her pencil when she dropped it on accident in class, letting her pass first whenever she walked into a room like a gentleman. Talia liked him, well, she liked everybody, she had always found it hard to hate anyone to the point where she would go out of her own way to make them feel bad.

She was observant, curiosity was simply imbedded in her nature, and she was most definitely curious about this Eddie kid.

So, during one of their classes together, on the rare occasion he went to class, she passed him a note, saying that she'd like to meet up with him after class, on the benches near the track field. He gave her a knowing look and nodded.

At the sound of the bell, signaling lunchtime, she headed for the spot she had asked to meet at.

Talia sat, twiddling with her fingers as she looked around, waiting. It was a fine autumn day, the sun was high in the sky, but the crisp weather of autumn made it cool, refreshing. For a minute, Talia closed her eyes to listen to the trees sway to the wind passing by, to the chirp of birdsong; and it was as if she was transported back home, in the spring pools near Mount Makiling where her father used to take them to every summer.

Her thoughts of home were disrupted at the sound of shuffling leaves and footsteps. She opened her eyes to behold a boy with wild, curly hair and big brown eyes, his shirt embellished with a demon design and the words "Hellfire Club" embellished on the front.

She smiled at him, unsure at first what the courtesies even were for a drug deal. "Hi."

He smiled back, dropping his metal lunchbox onto the table before taking his seat. "Hi."

Talia played with the hem of skirt, still unsure as she avoided eye contact with him. "So um, how does this work?"

“Well, first of all, I accept cash only payments, no receipts or anything, for obvious reasons and uh--”

Talia could only nod, finding it hard to focus on his words, the sound of her heart beating in her ears made it hard to listen.

Noticing that she was spaced out, Eddie waved a hand in front of her face, effectively snapping Talia out of her trance.

“You know, we don’t have to continue this if you don’t want to--“

“No, no, I’m, uh, sorry, I’m just-- I’m a little nervous.” She wipes her sweaty palms on her skirt.

Eddie chuckles. "Hey, you don't have to be all nervous with me, I should be the one all sweaty and stuttering, with one of the most popular girls at school sitting right in front of me."

She lets out a small laugh, shaking her head, her initial tension dissipates.

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't consider myself that."

"You wouldn't? You're liked by practically the entire school, faculty included." He points at her, pursing his lips.

She laughs, again, but a heavy feeling settles in her stomach. "I don't know if I'm even half of what anyone thinks I am." What was she doing, confiding in someone who was basically a complete stranger? Talia had no idea why those words tumbled out of her mouth, berating herself inside her head. Great, now he thinks you’re weird or like, fishing for compliments.

"I mean, to me you definitely are," he stands up, his hands behind his back as he paces around the table, her eyes can't help but follow him. "Let's see, the great Talia Evangelista, top of the school, star figure skater, and musician prodigy, the sweetheart of Hawkins High." He turns, now beside her. "Checks all the boxes for me, Ms. Perfect."

She rolls her eyes playfully. "You forgot black belt taekwondo student."

Eddie frowns then takes a bow. "My apologies, well accomplished madam."

Talia laughs again. "Yeah but seriously, people only like me for what I can give them, study notes, cheat sheets, gossip, whatever other petty high school thing there is."

Eddie lifts the lid of his lunchbox, revealing the goods Talia had come for. "Well, Madam Evangelista, it seems you and I have more in common than one may think."

She shuffled in her seat. Was she being rude? Randomly asking someone for weed without getting to know them first? Is there even any sort of etiquette when dealing drugs? Suddenly she felt guilt creep up her throat. She swallowed, no, he's right. That's just how the world works, right? You give something, you get something. Still Talia couldn’t help but try and swallow the guilt that had begun to crawl up her throat.

"So, I can charge you around 25 for this much—?" Eddie's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Um, well, uh, I'm actually kind of new to all this." She muttered.

"Really? I mean, I guess that's expected, straight as an arrow, just like her A's." Eddie joked, but all Talia could do was smile.

"You know, we really don't have to continue this if you don't want to." He says, sensing her hesitation.

"No, no, it's just that..would you maybe mind showing me the ropes?"

Eddie let out a breath. "I mean, I don't usually do this but uh, yeah, sure."

"I'll make sure to pay you for whatever we smoke, or huff maybe? I don't know how this works." She hides her face in her hands, a habit she did when she was embarrassed.

"Hey, hey, it's okay," He reassured her. "No need, try before you buy, am I right?" He chuckles, again. He absolutely had no idea why he was saying that, usually he only took his payment, gave them weed, and left. But this was Talia, sweet, kind Talia who somehow kept her humanity despite having friends from the popular crowd. Hell, everyone liked her, it was only natural to be attracted to her overwhelming positivity.

"So do I like, need your address or something?" She muttered.

"I mean, I can give it to you, unless you'd like to take a ride on my mighty steed." He joked. She knew he was joking, but Talia couldn't help but be completely entranced by this boy, curious of him.

"I'd like to take you up on that offer, actually," She replies, pulling up her cardigan's sleeves. "About the ride to your place, I mean."

Eddie blinks. Wait, was she actually serious?

"Uhhh really? You'd risk being seen with me?" He points towards his chest.

Talia furrowed her eyebrows. "Why would that be a problem?" She shrugged.

"Well, it may be part of the fact that you're up here—" he lifts his hand up above his head. "—on the social pyramid and well, I'm down here," he lowers his hand up until his torso.

It was her turn to chuckle. Time to throw all caution into the wind. "Who cares if we're seen together? I sure don't, and if anyone does it's their problem, not mine." Talia was tired of pretending, tired of being ‘perfect’, of being someone she wasn't. Fuck anyone to hell now, all she needed was free reign over her life and this would mark the start of that.

"Okay then," Eddie says, tone pleasantly surprised. "I'll uh, pick you up after class?"

Talia picks up her back pack. "We can go now if you want." She smiles, doe eyes shining.

"You're okay with missing classes?" Eddie tilts his head, somewhat puzzled.

"Yeah." She nods, shrugging nonchalantly, doing her best to ignore the pulsating of her heart at the thought of her aunt finding out about this. Oh who cares, Evangelista? Auntie Isabela is out for the week, what could go wrong?

"Alright then, well, I'll lead the way." Eddie smiles, motioning her to follow him.

Talia hesitated, biting her lip before jogging towards him in order to catch up to his speed, pushing any and every doubt or feelings of hesitation to the back of her head.

Fuck it.

#eddie munson x oc #eddie munson #stranger things oc

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